London: Arrival

On Sunday, we had lunch at the Prince of Wales with the family, and then spent time with Dean, Jenny and the children at Nan and Pop's house. That evening, it was time to pack up.

On Monday morning, we gave kisses to Nan and Pop, and took the train into London to start our short 43-hour city break. We had two things solidly on the agenda: a play booked at Shakespeare's Globe Theatre, and tickets to the Tower of London.

We found our Premier Inn, in a fabulous spot near the Thames and the Globe, and dropped off our big suitcases. Then, we wandered around for a while. 

On our wanders, we found the Golden Hinde, the replica of Sir Francis Drake's ship, so we bought tickets and went aboard. 

We learned the replica was constructed 50 years ago using the old, original shipbuilding method, and, like its predecessor, successfully traveled around the world. Stace remembers seeing it with his Pop when he was a boy, when it docked in Cornwall.

There were informational signs and activities for kids, and you could imagine what it might have been like to be a 16th century sailor (no thanks!).

Stace and Cora continued their longstanding argument over whether Drake was a pirate, or privateer, or if privateer was a synonym for pirate. A fellow visitor overheard and said she was a history professor, and he was indeed NOT a pirate. 

Then, in the next room, a sign labeled Drake a pirate. We got a laugh.

London is an amazing city. Maybe we were just in the best parts, but it felt safe, and every view was pretty.

Here, we were walking across the Millennium Bridge toward St. Paul's Cathedral.

Without prearranged tickets, we weren't able to go inside, but seeing it outside was special in itself.

Cora managed to get on WiFi and looked up "boba near me," and successfully navigated us to a boba shop. The girls were very happy to have their favorite drink, for the first time in two weeks. It's not easy to find in Somerset, but boba is all over London, we discovered.

Across the street was a fancy little bakery, where we got sausage rolls.

This bit of Southbank history - the remains of the 12th century Winchester Palace - was preserved near our hotel. Truly a great place to explore!

England 2025: Arrival

 

Stace started his birthday out while we were on our long flight to England, so we gave him his gift before we got in the car for the journey to LAX. He's always interested in Lego and was very happy to get this Williams Racing car. 

Our traditional start-of-trip photo...

We again flew with Norse Atlantic, the low-cost carrier we used last year for the first time. With proper planning, it's a good way to save hundreds/thousands of dollars. The girls sat together, and Stace and I sat apart from each other and them. 

When we arrived in London, it was hot! Sitting outside waiting for our train, and then the long hot train ride to Yeovil, weren't our favorite things to do, but all's well that ends well and we ended up in our cozy beds at Nan and Pop's house soon enough.

On Sunday, we walked to lunch at the Rusty Axe, and had a nice meal together, the six of us.

The girls loved playing pool together in the back room. Violet has an *interesting* technique, which mainly involves silly moves and lots of laughter.

Thankfully she didn't mind losing to her big sister.

Later, Auntie Doreen came over and brought a yummy birthday cake for Stace. We were all very appreciative.

Day Out: Bath

Bath! An outstanding city. We brought the girls here in 2016, and Cora had fond memories and wanted to return (see posts here and here from that trip).

On our trip Wednesday, we again paid for entry to the Roman Baths, since the girls are now eight years older than last time. It's such a great museum. Did you know, the water behind us is green because of algae, but in Roman times, there was a roof, so the water would have been clear?

I think Stace did a nice job with this photo.

The hot springs still flow, but Cora wasn't that impressed with the warm, sulfuric water.

We met back up with Nan and Pop, found some lunch, and then walked over to the weir and Pulteney Bridge.

We decided to not pay to enter Bath Abbey, though it's an impressive building.

We happened upon an amazing bookstore, and both girls found books to buy.

We enjoyed a lovely train ride home through the countryside.

Back Home in Somerset

We made our return to Somerset this week, flying in Monday/Tuesday on a newer carrier, Norse Atlantic Airways. It was an overall good experience, and we saved a lo of money. We had to pack light and bring our own food, and we flew into Gatwick instead of Heathrow.

For the first time, the girls took the train with us back to Somerset. First, we took the Tube from Gatwick to Paddington, and on that ride, we caught this cool view of Tower Bridge.

Then, we got on the train to Castle Cary, where Dean and Nan and Pop picked us all up.

We had a much earlier flight in, and somehow, we all adjusted a bit easier to the time change.

On our first day, Stace, Vi and I took a bike ride to East Lambrook to see a watercolor art show I'd seen advertised in the local paper. It was well worth seeing. We enjoyed a drink and a cake in the shop after.

The River Parrett

Country views are the best.

We also went to the village shop and playground on our first full day,

Later in the trip, we took a walk to Thorney Mill, and walked home through the fields. We're up on the little bridge here.

It's so good to be together again.

All Aboard, to Paris!

We said goodbye to Sue and Gord on Monday morning, and boarded a train at Yeovil Junction bound for London, and then on to Paris.

Yes, Paris!

Traveling is exhausting!

In iconic Waterloo Station!

We took the Underground from Waterloo to St. Pancras Station, where we were to take the Eurostar. What a beautiful building! We were across the street in this photo, at a place where we stored our big suitcase, which we didn't want to drag around Paris.

The Eurostar was very comfortable, an enjoyable way to travel.

On the other side, we eventually figured out how to buy Metro tickets and get on the Metro, in the right direction toward our Latin Quarter hotel.

Our first view when we came up from the Metro station in "our" neighborhood - Starbucks!

I didn't get a great photo of our hotel, but here's Violet in the lobby. Hotel St Andres des Arts was very old, and we had a great experience there. The location was outstanding, right in a happening area that felt very safe, and walking distance from the Seine, Notre Dame and other must-see sites.

We went out for a late dinner, around 9 p.m., and that was the norm in Paris! Especially with the late, light nights.

Even walking back to the hotel around 11 p.m., it was packed, everywhere. We loved the vibe!